Smiles and Tears
by Chaosrunepownage
Summary: Part two to "Zero Minecraft." When a force immune to plasma and lasers invades, the Hunters find themselves depending on a single girl and eight emeralds. Still AU compared to my other stories with no Claw or Mel. I do not own the characters besides the human.
1. Let's Begin!

Smiles and Tears: Let's Begin!

It is an unbearably hot summer day. With air conditioning broken, the pool out back was the brunette's only hope of cooling off. Curiously, the pool now had the same look as Minecraft's water and the frame looked like glowstone. Knowing what this likely means, the girl runs back into her house. She grabs some things and hastily writes a note.

Dear Skarloey,

I'm sorry but I have to leave now. The future is in danger. Don't worry; I'll be in the care of my ultimate hero.

-Rheneas

"The servers are the seven Chaos. Chaos is power, enriched by the heart. The controller serves to unify the chaos."

She then cannon-balls into the pool.

-()-

The trio of S-rank hunters sat in a meeting room. With them were Alia and Signas.

"So how did you get back from Minecraft?" Axl had an adoring undertone to his voice.

"Well, the kind girl made the opposite of the portal that brought me there and it worked. It still seems weird to me though."

The story had to be cut short, as a visitor suddenly materialized. A stunningly beautiful teenage girl sat on the middle of the table, dressed in a traditional martial arts uniform, a large claw hanging from her neck and carrying some miniature scythes and a wooden box carved with a cat's paw print. Even Axl drooled a bit at their sudden visitor. One slap from Alia awoke the hunters from their daydream.

"Don't just sit there, ask who this is!"

"It's so nice to see you in person, Arceus."

"You know this girl, Zero?"

"Yes. She's the one I met in Minecraft. Why are you here?"

"My pool became an Aether portal. The only thing that can mean is that there's a darkness coming that you three alone cannot defeat."

"I've heard crazier explanations from Axl…"

"HEY!"

"If you don't mind me asking, what can a human do that we can't?"

"Let me show you the basics first. Stand up X."

X stood up, and Arceus knocked him over with one powerful side kick.

"Oof!"

"I'm a sixth-degree black belt in Tae-Kwon-Do. I know how to handle close combat easily. For the more interesting stuff, I'll need a Maverick simulator."

"No problem. I'll lead you there."

Zero took Arceus' hand and showed her the way to the training room. Layer, creeping from the shadows was not pleased with this. The violet-haired navigator had a crush on Zero and looked on with malevolence at this new girl.

"I'd like to start with an ice-based Maverick first."

The brunette opened up her wooden box, revealing eight gemstones. A green, red, blue, light blue, white, yellow, purple and a larger green gemstone were all neatly tucked inside. She pulled out the red one and placed it in the large hole in one of the small scythes. The bluish steel blade turned into flames as Chill Penguin entered the simulation room.

"Chaos… Phoenix!"

A large burst of flames, shaped like a bird erupted from the girl's hands, and hit Chill head-on. The data indicated that this one blast took off three-quarters of the holographic Maverick's energy. She then charged straight in, dealing the finishing blow with her flaming scythes.

"Impressed?"

"How… How did you do that…?" Even Alia was shocked.

"My father gave me this pair of kamas and eight emeralds to use them with… Before he… Well… He showed me how to manipulate their power… Anyway, bring on some more!"

Seven Mavericks fell just as easily to the almost-magical seeming kamas. The crimson warrior secretly smiled. _That's definitely the girl I met. _

"Haven't even broken a sweat. Now do you see my ability?"

"I guess so. It still feels weird to send in a teenage girl."

"I'll prove my worth X, you'll see… Send in the big guns!"

In the simulation chamber stood Wolf Sigma from the First War. The martial artist smirked, putting the smaller green emerald in a kama.

"Chaos… Earthquake!"

Large, spear shaped chunks of earth hurtled at Sigma, hitting crucial points. Data indicated only a sliver of energy left. One stony slice quickly finished Wolf Sigma.

"Any questions?"

"Wow… All this and you're still human…?"

"Mostly." She gestured to an insulin pump on her side. "Technically I'm a cyborg thanks to this index card sized piece of machinery but obviously this doesn't amp up my strength."

"I still find that hard to believe."

"Go ahead and scan me."

Despite all scans, the results remained the same. One-hundred percent organic besides the insulin pump.

"How…?"

"Training. Now that you know I'm human, can I ask where I will be sleeping?"

"Well, you could…"

"If you don't mind, I'd like to have her in my quarters."

"Really…? Lodging with THE Zero…?"

"Yes."

"Brace yourselves… I'm about to go very hyper very quickly…"

Not even nanoseconds later, the powerful, mostly calm Arceus changed into a blur, literally bouncing off the walls.

"May I ask, how is a human able to exert this much energy?"

"She called it fandom, Signas. A force that should never be underestimated."

Axl groaned, "You can say that again…"

After thirty-two minutes of insane energy, Arceus collapsed and fell asleep. By then everyone besides Zero crawled out of the room, fearing the power of this "fandom." The crimson warrior gently picked up the exhausted girl and carried her off to his room. Layer witnessed this and began to scowl.

"Just what are you pulling here, you dense, stupid robot…?"


	2. Cautiously

Smiles and Tears: Cautiously

"We've discovered all the Chaos Emeralds and the Master Emerald in the possession of one person." The robot's monotone voice split the dead silence in a dark room.

A slimy, terrifying voice replied, "That's nice… Very nice… Is the prisoner ready to be skinned?"

"Yes, that bothersome rat will no longer plague you."

"Bring him in… I want to see with my very own eyes the fall of the hedgehog."

"Very well."

Two large, generic robots dragged in a blue creature bound up in chains.

"You'll… Never… Win…!" The blue creature's voice strained pathetically.

"Silence Sonic the Hedgehog! You're in MY control now! Now with this fused world, I'll have a robot army under MY command immediately AND any who resist will fall into instant death spikes. YOUR spikes! Ahahahaha!"

The robots chained Sonic to a steel bed, and slit him open. They skinned him like a dog.

"My plan cannot fail now that Sonic is gone, once and for all! It helps to have someone from this world to help too…"

Blue eyes, scarred with purple scratches glowed in the distance.

-()-

"We're receiving a distress signal, Signas. It's coming from a residential area!"

"An uprising?"

"No, the attackers seem to be… Anthropomorphic robots…?"

-()-

X surveyed the area. Many destroyed houses, but no sign of the offensive.

"Is this a joke? Even Mavericks aren't this smart."

"You're right, blue rat! These are no Mavericks!" The mysterious voice was enough to make X nervous.

"Who is there?"

"Watch out X!" Somehow, Arceus was here, and warned X of an incoming blast.

"So the rat has friends… Interesting, but to no avail!"

"Doctor Robotnik! Show yourself NOW!"

"A little girl has come to play. How sweet."

A hovering, hemisphere shaped device with a very rotund figure sitting in it appeared from the ruins. The figure had on a red shirt with black overalls and was bald except for a giant moustache.

"Give me those Chaos Emeralds and nothing will happen to your friend."

"Never! I'm not nearly as dumb as you think I might be!"

"Prepare to learn a lesson, little girl. A lesson in pain."

A large wrecking ball dropped from the floating contraption and began to swing around. X tried firing at the chain, but the azure hunter's shots bounced off with a cartoony-sounding "ping."

"Did you honestly think that someone with 300 I.Q. would forget to research their enemy? I've enhanced all of my machines with litanium, immune to all plasma and laser shots!"

"But can you take a tornado?" The burnette placed the purple emerald in her kama and began to smile.

"That won't help you silly girl!"

"Chaos… Tornado!"

A swirling vortex appeared around Robotnik and flung him around the area.

"I'm not finished yet!"

The wrecking ball now sported blue spines all over it, spelling instant death for Reploids.

"You couldn't… You never could…!"

"Oh yes I did. Mobius' hedgehog hero is dead!"

"You're going to pay for this!"

"A line I will never speak again! Ahahahaha!"

"Chaos… Blitz!"

At supersonic speed, the enraged human sliced away at Robotnik and his machine, causing critical malfunction and a satisfying explosion.

"You're going to pay for this!"

"Irony is a cruel maiden, isn't she Egghead?"

Doctor Robotnik managed to dissipate into nothing.

"He got away."  
"That was only the first round. There's probably seven more waiting around the world."

"Thanks for saving me…"

"Friends don't let other friends die."


	3. More Troublesome Guys

Smiles and Tears: More Troublesome Guys

"We're getting reports of an attack on a melting facility."

"Send out Zero. Maybe his saber can do something against the new robots."

"I know he'll be able to clear out that area in a flash. No need for that silly girl."

"We don't know what we're up against yet Layer…"  
"DON'T SEND HER IN!"

"Okay, okay! Can we calm down now?" Alia was genuinely afraid of the purple-haired navigator.

As opposed to the residential area, the melting facility was filled with all sorts of strange animal-bots. These didn't seem to have much armor, and one slice could easily set them to a fiery death. A steely ball appeared out of a pit of lava with Robotnik in it.

"Your attack ends here, Robotnik!"

"My, my what do we have here? A lovely Little Red Riding Hood? It is a true honor…"

Enraged, the crimson hunter began to slice at the sphere. It showed no damage at all.

"Ahahaha! My armor cannot be broken so easily! Eat lava, Goldilocks!"

The sphere launched up into the sky, and caused a typhoon of lava to spill all around. The blond warrior found themselves swimming in super-heated lava intended to melt down other Reploids quickly.

"Chaos… Blizzard!"

The area became frosty cold and a blizzard froze the lava just as soon as Zero was able to climb onto a nearby rock, nearly defeated. Arceus stood, light blue emerald in kama, staring angrily at Robotnik.

"You just messed with the wrong idol… Now sleep in the bitter cold I felt on the Day of Darkness!"

The enraged burnette hacked mercilessly at the sphere until it explodes and Robotnik flies off.

"Are you okay…?"

"I'm fine." Zero bluffed, as he usually does.

"Hold on a minute please…"

Arceus took out the larger green emerald and drew a circle in the rock around Zero. It glowed green faintly, and the saber-wielding warrior felt suddenly repaired.

"Nothing that a little Rejuvenation can't handle. Let's get back now."

Sapphire eyes gazed upon the girl with bewilderment. _How is she doing all of this? It almost seems like… Magic…? _

Back at the base, Layer was not pleased but she held her tongue. Whoever this human is, she'll have to confront her later.

"We saw you from the security camera. That was pretty impressive work, Arceus."

"Oh, heh… That's nothing…" She blushed slightly and looked away.

"Really, it would take hours for Lifesaver to do that amount of repair. What is so special with those gems?"

"Erk… Well… My mother said that in ancient times, some believed these emeralds could turn thoughts into power, with that power being infinite. I didn't really believe her until I was able to use the elemental powers of the various emeralds."

"You've gone above and beyond once again."

"Umm Signas, I think she's asleep…"

Everyone around chuckled and laughed for a bit. Ever since day one, there have been jokes of how boring Signas' speeches were. Now they have living proof.


	4. Tragic Reconstruction

Smiles and Tears: Tragic Reconstruction

"Attacks are breaking out all over; it looks like Robotnik is going for a full-on assault."

"We'll need to split up. Even if the more valuable robots are immune to normal weaponry, we can minimize the damage caused."

"Head for the dense populations first and know your limits everyone."

The four hunters split to the four most populated areas where attacks were occurring. Damage here was also the worst, hinting at high-level robots being in the area. Cries of pain could be heard everywhere and the smell of blood penetrated even the deepest cellars. Arceus then ran into something, or rather someone more disturbing than all of the previous uprisings combined. She thought she saw an injured fox and wanted to help it, but looks are very deceiving.

"Can you move little fox?"

The burnette was greeted with blood-red, glowing eyes in an almost-fully metallic face. Most of the body was also mechanical, and only the fox's two tails were left fully organic.

"Tails! What… What did he do to you?"

"Kill… me…" The young fox's voice was now horribly garbled and mechanized.

"H… How…? WHY?"

Hesitantly, the kama-wielding warrior began to attack. Cyborg Tails fired missiles and shot lasers, dealing heavy damage to the area. Arceus was nimble enough to avoid, but normal civilians trying to hide from robotic fury were not. Some were crushed by falling rubble while others got direct fire.

"I know you got butchered in my time… But I still can't finish you off..."

"Firing at target. Target must not escape. Target has Chaos Emeralds."

"Goodbye, little buddy… Chaos… Maelstrom!"

Cyborg Tails got caught up in a whirlpool, robotic components still not fully waterproof. The one eye still original to the hero fox looked sad as he knew he had to die.

"Robotnik… I always knew you were tortured… But to go this far… It cannot go on!"

Arceus raced to the next site to assist Axl. She saw the small hunter engaged in combat with another cyborg, this one being a pink hedgehog.

"Agh! That hammer is devastating!"

"It's okay Axl, I can stop her… Never really liked Amy so this will be easier…"

"New target acquired."

"Thundadga!" Lightning struck Cyborg Amy and short-circuited her immediately.

"Thanks, one more hit and I'd be toast!"

"Get to safety… These monsters are out of your league."

Not far away, Zero was fighting off a black hedgehog cyborg. The crimson warrior had managed to cut off one of the monster's arms, but the two still seemed evenly matched.

"Shadow… So misunderstood, so ruined… Why couldn't you be the same character as you were in Adventure Two?"

"Pitiful human, you have no clue what you're dealing with."

"Even so, you shouldn't have been put though this… P.K. Flash!"

A bright flash blinded the cyborg, allowing enough time for some good slices. Cyborg Shadow didn't give up, and managed to land a good kick on Arceus' leg. Despite the pain, she managed to defeat the cyborg nightmare.

"Get to safety, there's only one left."

"I'm fine, really. Nothing but a scratch."

"You call getting your arm torn off a scratch? Even the Black Knight would be proud! Just get out of fighting please!"

One strong robot left. Cyborg Knuckles. Already trained to be a powerful fighter, it was no surprise for blue topaz eyes to see X knocked out and Cyborg Knuckles beating up anything that moves.

"To think Mobius' great heroes could fall and become this…"

"Grrh!"

"End the torture now… Chaos… Blitz!"

Supersonic slices gave a quick end to the nightmare Knuckles must be going through. Arceus carried the azure Reploid back to base where low-ranked hunters cheered her on. She wasn't happy though, she had just killed some of her favorite heroes. Controlled by Robotnik or not, the fact still stood that the foes she faced were once carefree animals of Mobius and outer space. Only after taking a few strides into base, she collapsed, utterly exhausted from the battles. When she awoke, Signas was sitting next to her in a meeting room.

"Are you feeling okay?"

"Yeah, just used a bit too much energy."

"That's good. You deserve a lot for what you've done for us."

"Oh really, it's still nothing. My idol is among your ranks after all."

"You still go beyond even advanced Reploid skill."

"Just a gift I have, nothing more."

X stepped into the room, and looked directly at Arceus.

"I wanted to thank you personally for saving me."

"If there's one good thing about my Asperger's, it's devotion to friends. I wouldn't leave a friend behind, no matter what."

"You almost sound like Zero."

"Heheh thanks! I try to!"


	5. Misplaced Revenge

Smiles and Tears: Misplaced Revenge

Arceus was helping Zero with some paperwork. She didn't mind boring, repetitive tasks as long as they helped her idol. Layer decided this was too far.

"Can I talk to you Arceus?"

"Sure!"

Layer pulled Arceus into an isolated sound-proof room for questioning.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?"

"I'm trying to help. I know how much Zero hates paperwork."

"THAT'S MY JOB!"

"I'm sorry, I didn't know. I don't really know very much about you."

"HANDS OFF MY ZERO!"

"Calm down please, I'm only trying to help." She snapped her fingers, and the scene changed to a peaceful riverbank with trees all around and a small cave in the rocks.

"HOW DID YOU DO THAT WITCH?"

"Please relax. I don't mean anyone any harm."

"You DIDN'T ANSWER my QUESTION!"

"This might seem a pathetic answer, but I was born with special skills. Most people in my world call it magic."

"If you have these powers naturally, why do you need those emeralds?"

"Think of them as force metal for organic creatures. They give us infinite power to use as we please."

"How can I trust you with infinite power? That situation has led countless hunters to become Mavericks."

"The difference between them and me is that I am a human from another world. I know how to use the emerald's power without it using me. You saw for yourself how I fight."

"I still don't trust you…"

"That's perfectly natural. Some prodigy comes out of nowhere and worships your love interest and they seem to be the only one able to end this war. If this happened to me, I would be skeptical too." Snapping her fingers again, the world returned to normal. "Father always told me that the only thing worrying will accomplish is more worrying."

The brunette walked out with a peaceful, childish expression. Layer didn't know what to make of the new girl. On the one hand, she had saved the best hunters from certain termination by robots. On the other, she used mysterious energy that couldn't be explained by data or science. Zero seemed to trust her greatly, and the purple-haired navigator couldn't help but feel a little jealous. Maybe this girl really was only trying to help, but she was simply different. After all, the laws of physics in her world might be very different from this world's. She remembered Zero telling X that some things can't be analyzed properly as data, some things you have to feel for yourself.


	6. Intense Guys

Smiles and Tears: Intense Guys

"Attacks seem to have calmed down for now."

"That's good; we can finally get some rest."

-()-

"How could my mechanical heroes have possibly failed? They are invincible to weaponry!" Robotnik's slimy, intimidating voice shattered a nearby robot's glass monocle.

"Sir, might I remind you of the girl?"

"Oh yes, Chaos energy… The one flaw I can never fix."

-()-

The crimson hunter sat with the fierce burnette on his bed. She was obviously still tired from using so much energy.

"If you don't mind telling me, where did you get that claw necklace?"

"My father gave it to me… Or at least he would've… I got it wrapped up in nice cat gift-wrap a day after…" She sniffed, and blue topaz eyes appeared sad.

"Something's bothering you?"

"My father died eight years ago in my world's time and the card attached were his final words to me… Forge on and be brave my little carnivore…" The tough-seeming martial artist began to cry.

"I'm sorry to hear that…"

"It's not your fault… The doctors should've seen it coming years ago… So now I'm terrified of hospitals and hospital shows because… Because… They let him DIE!" The girl vanished into thin air.

"Looks like a round of hide-and-go-seek with someone insanely powerful. Wonderful!"

The whole base looked for the burnette, but found nothing. Another attack began, so they had to switch focuses and hope that she'd recover soon…

"They're attacking the jungle city in even larger numbers!"

"Prepare everyone to go in or be back up."

Thousands of Badniks paraded around the city like they owned it. Even the greatest hunters soon found themselves overwhelmed with weak robots. There simply were too many to fight off. The Hunters would have to retreat and allow the destruction of the large city. Hours after the destruction, Arceus appeared once more. She was calm and collected like usual.

"We'll get them next time, heroes."

Next time turned out to be minutes away, with a major capitol under fire. With four highly-skilled hunters they were now able to box in the enemy and wipe most of them out. Robotnik came driving in a giant drill-car.

"How's defeat treating you, "heroes?"

"Your defeat is next! Leviathan!"

A massive serpent appeared and crushed the drill-car easily. It vanished along with Robotnik. Arceus instantly fell asleep, and this battle was won.


	7. Fight with Mecha Drago

Smiles and Tears: Fight with Mecha Drago

"Well played little girl… Well played…"

"Is it time sir?"

"Yes. It's time to deploy the strongest one besides my good friend over there…"

"Do you mean the weird thing you fused with Metal Sonic?"

"WHY YES I DO!"

-()-

"Reports are coming in of a… cyborg tyrannosaurus rex?"

"Robotnik's next attack, no doubt."

Four hunters came across the metal monster. It was indeed a cyborg tyrannosaurus rex, shown by some patches of scales on its hulking body with the majority of it being metal. It used its powerful jaws to tear down or eat anything in sight. A little boy with blonde hair ran in panic as they saw the monster eat a woman in a red dress. She was his mother. The beast continued to destroy downtown, undaunted by harmless laser and plasma fire. Its tail decapitated an unlucky bunch of hunters or civilians every step.

"Chaos… Blizzard!"

Even extreme cold didn't stop the rampage. It only got a few minor components frozen up. Water and electric-based attacks were only slightly more effective. Nothing seemed to penetrate the tank-like rex's armor. A tooth broke off, and gave the burnette an idea. She sliced open a leg with the tooth, and suddenly the monster wasn't so tough. One powerful electric attack was enough to overload it and end the destruction. The world was safe, for now.


	8. Strong One

Smiles and Tears: Strong One

"Gah! I thought that I'd have more time!"

"It doesn't mater anymore. Hehehe…"

"You'll take them on? Even if you're incomplete?"

"Those little "heroes" are nothing."

-()-

"It's the moment we knew was coming… It seems like that crazy doctor rebuilt Sigma."

"Perfect! Just perfect!"

"It looks like a combination of a dragon and a styracosaurus. It also seems like Robotnik's taking a final stand in a giant mech."

-()-

"This is it. The final battle. Hand over those Chaos Emeralds and nobody important will be hurt!"

"No Robotnik, I can't! I can't let you make other innocent children feel the pain I did! I won't let you make another Lucas or another me! I won't let you kill any more parents, siblings or friends!"

The seven small emeralds hovered around the girl and her white uniform turned golden. With red, determined eyes, she placed the largest emerald in her kama and engaged the mech.

Across the field; countless hunters engaged the metal madness that is Sigma. They could do little to stave off the monster's swipes, even when hitting the glowing obvious weak points. Fully-charged blasts harmlessly hit like ice landing in a frying pan. The beast roared in sick delight because of how helpless the defenders of humanity found themselves.

"Chaos… Overgrowth!"

Vines choked up the mech's movements. It couldn't move at all.

"I can't believe this!"

"Heheh… Now for the grand finale, Bombos!

Flames scorched the mech into scrap metal. The golden warrior turned their attention to the hybrid of Metal Sonic and Sigma. The metal madness had already disabled the trio of S-rank hunters.

"Thank you for so kindly getting rid of that fool. I would've just backstabbed him anyway."

"Hmph. You're next. I hope you like the sun." The green emerald shifted to white. "Because there's going to be a lovely solar flare here."

Holding the white emerald aloft, the powerful fighter summoned a localized solar flare. The heat melted the armor, leaving Sigma vulnerable. Instead of finishing the Maverick leader off, the girl pulled out a sphere of purple energy. Another, smaller sphere appeared out of Zero, and both circled around the white Chaos Emerald.

"It's time to end this madness. I free this world of its curse from the past! Infect me, virus!"

The purple energy went into the warrior and she fell to the ground. Her last action was to jab the larger green emerald into the ground, splitting the fused worlds back into two. She lies there, motionless. When backup comes, she still shows no signs of life but now had two long horns on her head and two blue, bat-like wings on her back. Back at the base, they make a surprising discovery. The dragon claw necklace appears to have some data on it. A holographic picture of a bearded man in their forties appears.

"My dear Sarah or Thomas as you prefer to call yourself today. I realize in my waning hours something I should have told you long ago." The man then morphs into a European-style dragon with two long horns, blue scales and spikes for eyebrows. "I have long hidden the fact that I am really a dragon, making you half-dragon. This is why you have what most would call 'magic.' All of your organs are mechanical because a human form can't handle the power of a dragon. I had managed to disguise this well enough for you to still go through metal detectors. I feared that such truths would scare you, being barely seven years old at this point. But now you know the truth, and that is really all that matters. I only wish I could be with you longer… A corrupt person has poisoned me beyond the help of magic and medicine, so I speak my last. Remember when I cut my thumb off while splitting wood? The reason we never found it is that I kept it hidden, and prepared the claw for a necklace. I know it is not much to remember me by, but it should give you strength at your weakest. Find hope and hold onto it like you held onto me. Always know that engine number two, Edward, will always be there for you. May the Sun be with you."

"S… She never knew…?"

"It seems like that Axl…"

"But… She…"

"Sometimes life takes a turn for the tragic. Because of her sacrifice, it seems like the world can finally be at peace."

"It's not fair X… We were powerless and she had to pay the price…"

"The price of peace is always high." Zero showed uncharacteristic kindness and hugged the navy hunter. "Life goes on as it always has."

_Take a melody_

_Simple as can be_

_Give it some words_

_And sweet harmony_

_Raise your voices_

_All day long now_

_Love grows strong now_

_Sing a melody of love, oh love_


End file.
